When you fail to study before exams...

[sanantone]

Attending community college is already available to everyone- anyone- and if you're in a lower income bracket, you'll receive a Pell, which over-pays the tuition. We don't need free community college. Even at the most expensive CCs in the country, you can earn your associate's degree for about $8,000. That's $75/week - an amount most of us can swing working a few hours waiting tables.

Now- here's the big question, let's say everyone earned an associate's degree (transfer or trade occupation) what's the pay off? More skilled trades (good) and more transfer students (useless). Transfer students aren't yet trained in a skill- they have 2 more years to go! So, they're now faced with the HIGHEST cost tuition, 300/400 level. Even as a transfer student, now they're jumping into a program that's going to cost them no less than $30,000 to finish their degree- and that's only if they stay in-state and keep living expenses to the minimum. Much harder to swing....

I hate the idea of just a blanked "free community college" approach because it doesn't solve the issue- if we really do have shortages in this county in certain occupations, then fund incentives programs to attract students into those occupations.

(and even though I found the gal humorous to watch, the truth is, that speaking up is a skill I applaud)

I agree with part of your post. I do not agree with $75 a week being easy to afford. If I didn't receive the Pell Grant, I would not have been able to afford $75 per week. Luckily, Texas CCs aren't that expensive anyway.

I worked full-time, but I had bills to pay. I wasn't living at home with my mother. I also had a dependent to provide for making less than $9 per hour. $300 per month would have made us homeless. Of course, one can take on a second job, but that means that there would be practically no time left to put in an adequate amount of effort on schoolwork, especially if one is attending on campus.

The woman in the video does have a point. Making CCs free should be around the same cost as offering grants since grants are often give in excess. Of course, eliminating grants, though, would mean that students would have to take out loans to help with books and living expenses.

While some may believe that some college presidents make too much (a very small percentage make as much as CEOs), reducing their salaries will probably drop tuition rates a couple of dollars at most.

The required fees do hurt. Students should be able to opt out of access to things they won't use.